Stay
by Varyssa
Summary: Raziel and Mioko are reunited when wraith Raziel makes a detour on his way to kill Kain. Plz review x (please? It's only a one shot!)


Disclaimer – I do not own LOK or related characters. Mioko and Azrael are, as always mine. 'Daddy's Little Girl' belongs to Punkin.

For those of you who haven't read 'Raziel's Legacy' Mioko and Azrael escaped Kain's massacre and made thier way out of Nosgoth and ended up creating their own city.

Stay

Raziel looked up at the pitch-black city. The illumination of hundreds of flaming torches scattered through the city lit the Razielim banners that hung, billowing in the clear night air. 'So...it's true...' he thought. The text that Rahab had kept in his vast library had spoken truly. Mioko and Azrael had escaped Kain's order of a massacre and fled out of Nosgoth. The result of their brave venture now stood before Raziel.

A city, adorned with Raziel's crest, had spread across the forgotten lands. Raziel didn't know how he should feel. Part of him was ecstatic; his most beloved children had survived and passed on his legacy. Another part of him was wary; it had been centuries since he had seen his children; they may yet be dead and as he no longer bore any resemblance to the great vampire he had once been his 'descendants' would not recognize him in the slightest.

For what seemed like an age he just sat at a distance, his gaze traveling over the city, taking in its entire splendor. He finally decided to enter the city, leaving the tiny boat that had brought him to the home of his children.

He stepped lightly over the sandy shores as he neared the city. There were no gates or walls as there had been in his old Razielim, the city was open and easy to pass through. There was no need for a watch, not as they were so far from Nosgoth. There was no threat to the great city or its inhabitants. Few watchtowers had been constructed, looking over at the sea, obviously wary that Kain may one day choose to pursue the escapees and destroy them as he had their kinsmen.

Raziel slipped into the streets, unnoticed; the darkness of the night concealed him easily. The streets were quiet, a lot of noise was emanating from a large building to the east; no doubt the central palace of the new city. He chose not to go near the din, deciding to explore the city further, hiding himself in the shadows.

The city was empty; everyone it seemed had gone to the central palace to join the festival that was taking place. The streets were all very similar. Raziel's banner hung from the majority of windows, lifted ever so gently in the night time breezes. The buildings here were made of granite rocks rather than the marble used in Razielim. Marble was only used on to build the central palace; obviously it was not as common as it was in Nosgoth, a precious stone to be treasured.

He was admiring how far the long, intertwining streets extended when he was struck, heavily from something from behind. He was hit between the shoulder blades, sending him crashing to the ground.

"Well now, what manner of creature are you?" a familiar voice asked from behind. Raziel turned his glowing eyes to look at his attacker.

"Azrael," the wraith breathed. His firstborn son was standing over him, looking exactly as he had the day Raziel had left him, with one minor difference; two bat like wings protruding from his back. Raziel looked upon them, part of him was proud of the magnificent creature his son had become. Another part of him mourned the loss of his own wings.

Raziel rose, slowly and cautiously. He turned his gaze onto his son, who stood ready; his clawed hand hovering over the hilt of his sword.

"How is it you know my name?" Azrael demanded. Raziel made no answer, forcing his son to draw his sword and hold it agonizingly close to the side of the wraith's head, "I will hear your answer, demon. Who are you?"

"I have changed," came the eventual reply. Azrael frowned, his face contorted suddenly with concentration,

"I know that voice," he muttered. His sword clattered when it hit the ground as Azrael took a sudden step back, "but...it's not possible," he cocked his head to one side and tried to see in the figure before him the vampire who'd once been his sire, "Raziel?" he gasped.

Raziel nodded, slowly and Azrael, apparently not caring for his friend's appearance stepped forward and embraced him, warmly. When he stepped back, his face was a mixture of emotions. He was sad, distraught and inexpressibly happy at the same time.

"Raziel," he repeated, as if saying his name made it all the more believable and once more he wrapped his arms around his sire's fragile body, "but how?" he asked, drawing back for the second time. Raziel turned his head to the floor, but his son placed a hand on a shoulder, "It doesn't matter," he said, finally, "what matters is you're here!" he cried, trying and failing to contain his happiness and excitement and yet some part of him was aching to see his master reduced to the form he saw before him. "Come," Azrael invited, there is much for you to see."

Azrael led the somewhat reluctant Raziel to the central palace, though they didn't enter through the main entrance, the vampire led the wraith to the back entrance. They emerged in a fine chamber, where a female vampire immediately met them.

"Azrael!" she cried, happily, throwing her arms around the vampire's neck, resting her head on his chest, "where did you go?" she demanded, playfully punching his stomach. Azrael feigned pain and pretended to sob into her soft, black hair. He pulled back and kissed the top of her head affectionately,

"Raziel," he said, moving the vampire, gently, from his chest so he could introduce them, "This is Raven." Raven took a cautious step back from the wraith, but Azrael held her close, reassuringly, "Raven is the firstborn of new Razielim. Raven," he said, turning to the woman, "this is Raziel." Raven's eyes shot back at Raziel, taking in his every detail before she dropped to her knees in front of him,

"My lord," she said, her voice full of admiration, "I've...we've heard so much about you!" she cried, almost as happy as Azrael. The firstborn stepped forward and raised Raven by the shoulders, he whispered something in her ear and with a swift bow to Raziel she left them.

"I think she's more than just your firstborn," Raziel said, snidely. If he had lips they would have been twisted into a smirk. An unmistakable blush crept into Azrael's cheeks, but only for a moment as he turned away and led Raziel up into the palace.

They stopped in a fine chamber that was decorated in a similar fashion to the guest chambers in the Razielim palace though the materials were not as lavish as the ones found in Nosgoth.

"We receive materials from one of the villages," Azrael said, "in return we don't hunt their residents. They supply us with everything we need." Raziel would have smiled in appreciation as he reclined on one of the couches, though in his new form he couldn't appreciate the comfort it provided.

"What happened after..." Raziel began but broke off, "after Kain..." Azrael sat opposite his friend and sighed,

"He ordered the Turelim to come after us. I tried to convince the others, but they wouldn't hear of it...Mioko and I fled to Rahabim and then to here. We stayed in one of the abandoned villages until we eventually expanded." Azrael paused and hesitated, "how did you find us?" he asked.

"Rahab mentioned you in his what could be called a diary," Raziel explained.

"Rahab?" Azrael asked, one eyebrow raised, "how is he?" he asked curiously.

"Dead," Raziel muttered, coldly and without remorse, "They're all dead." Azrael looked up in shock,

"All of them, but how?" he asked, surprised.

"I killed them," the wraith replied calmly. Azrael flinched but said nothing, "Kain and Turel are the last left alive," Raziel continued. Azrael nodded slowly, understanding of why his master would want to take such brutal revenge. Thoughts of revenge had consumed his own mind for the longest of times.

There was a knock at the door and without waiting for a reply, a familiar female vampire stormed in and brought her face level with Azrael's,

"This better be important," she snapped, "I am _trying_ to..." she broke off as her eyes fell on the sitting wraith that rose up to meet her. She stopped and studied the figure before her.

"Raziel?" she gasped, "dad?" She didn't wait for an answer, choosing to dash at the wraith and wrap her arms around him; the force of her embrace caused them both to fall back against the couch.

"Mioko," Azrael called, "Mioko!" he repeated, sternly, "let him breathe," he tried to pull Mioko back and allowed Raziel the freedom to stand up with her.

Raziel looked on his daughter with the similar pride he had felt when he saw Azrael. She had the same long, dark hair, the same piercing blue eyes, the same flawless alabaster skin and her new wings, identical to Azrael's but slightly smaller.

"Dad!" she smiled, happily still holding onto her father. Azrael placed his hands on Mioko's shoulders,

"Mioko, let him go," he sighed. Mioko reluctantly stepped back but kept hold of one of her father's hands; stroking it affectionately with her own.

"You came back," she said, her voice quivering with emotion, "You actually came back."

"Mioko," he breathed, resting her head on what had once been his shoulder, "my love." She laughed,

"You really are Raziel," she said, happily, "Oh dad!" she cried, throwing her arms around him again.

Raziel would have smiled, happily down on her. Although he had little face left to express emotions, his glowing eyes made up for it. He leaned against Mioko as she rested upon his shoulder, "I missed you so much," she murmured.

"You are staying, right?" Azrael asked suddenly. Raziel looked up quickly and shook his head, "I have to go back," he muttered. Mioko drew back suddenly and looked up at him, her eyes filled with hurt and anger,

"You can't!" she cried suddenly, "You can't just leave us...not again! I've already lost you once, how can I go through that again?" Raziel reached out to her, but she stepped back, "How can you do this to us?" she whispered, turning and almost running from the room.

"Mioko," Raziel called, but she didn't stop. Azrael sighed and sat, rubbing his head,

"Don't be too hard on her, Raziel," he begged, "You don't know how hard it was for her." Raziel looked, curiously upon his son.

"She was alright for a while. She focused on us getting here and the making sure that we could live here, she kept me going when I felt like giving up...but then...after everything was settled she realized that she would be spending the rest of eternity without you and it really hit her badly. I don't think she ever got over it."

Raziel felt a surge of guilt rise up throughout him and he collapsed, back onto the sofa. "Must you go?" Azrael asked, whispering from opposite the wraith.

"I have to finish what I started, I'm sorry," came the sad reply. Azrael nodded, understandingly,

"but, when it's over...you'll come back to us, won't you?" he asked, his voice filled with hope. Raziel thought for a moment. He hadn't really thought about what he would do once Kain and his brethren were dead. He hadn't considered what he would have when this was all over. He stood up and nodded,

"When all this is over, I'll try to come back," he promised. Azrael sighed and rose, heading for the door,

"I suppose that's better than nothing," he said. He left Raziel to his thoughts, which were focused solely on his daughter and after much consideration; he left the room to find her in the next.

Unlike Azrael's room, Mioko's chamber didn't resemble her old room in Razielim in the slightest. It was smaller, less lavishly decorated and there were only simple furnishings. To Raziel's surprise, the rear wall was simply an extended bookcase, filled with books of different shapes and sizes. Raziel considered them for a moment; the Mioko he knew wasn't a fan of reading to his knowledge. Mioko herself was sitting on the bed with a small book in her hand. Raziel moved towards her and slid onto the bed, beside her.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, placing an arm around her.

"It's not fair," she sobbed, her voice choked with tears, "Why won't you stay?" she begged.

"I have to avenge myself, Mioko," he tried to explain, "I have to kill Kain." Mioko's eyes grew terrified, suddenly but before she could say anything, Raziel continued, "I know, I know. You'd like me to spare Kain...but I can't. I can't let him live for what he's done to me." Mioko nodded, slowly but hung her head,

"It's not that...it's..." she struggled to find the right words and eventually gave up, "never mind," she conceded. Raziel held her close, trying in vain to comfort his daughter.

"I will come back," he assured her, "when I have had my revenge I promise I will come back." Mioko stared at a point on the floor,

"And what if you can't?" she asked, not expecting an answer. Sadly, she lay herself down on the bed and buried her face in the pillow, unable to face her father. "Stay with me," she begged, quietly as she sobbed into the pillow. She felt Raziel's fallen arms come around her as he lay beside her; silently promising to stay with her through the night.

For a while he lay there, comforting her in silence as she vented her grief at losing her father a second time in eternity. Eventually a silence descended over them, broken only y the steady sounds of Mioko's breathing. Raziel leaned over her and examined her. She was sleeping soundly with tears silently trickling down her face.

The wraith rose gently as he left her. He sat on the edge of the bed, knowing he was going to make a cowardly escape now while she slept, rather than face her and say what could be their final goodbyes in the morning. He pushed himself up on the bed and was about to leave when he saw, sitting in the bookcase on top of some scattered books; the Chibi collection.

He couldn't help but smile inwardly as he made his way to examine Mioko's collection of cartoon-like dolls modeled after Kain and the brethren. He picked each one up and smiled sadly, remembering Mioko's childhood when they had played together with these dolls. He paused when he picked up Chibi Kain, Mioko's first Chibi and without a doubt her favourite, still in as perfect condition as the day it was made. Beside Chibi Kain sat Chibi Raziel, looking exactly as Raziel had when he was a vampire, but of course a lot cuter. Chibi Raziel was sitting on a book with the wraith's name written on it. Curious, Raziel picked it up and opened it, trying not to disturb his sleeping daughter. The book was filled with pictures Mioko had drawn of the vampire, including those drawn when she was a child. At the back of the book was a poem, written by Mioko, dated a few years after Raziel's execution;

If I had my life to do over,   
I'd have chosen you to be my dad   
once more.   
Even if it meant losing you again,   
It's worth all the tears in the   
world.   
You were my sunshine when skies   
were gray.   
I loved you and honored you;   
You took all my tears away.   
I was happy to be with you,   
Proud to be your little girl.   
Sometimes we would argue,   
But to me you meant the world.   
Your love was always pure;   
You treated me as your own.   
Your time seemed all too short and   
I feel so alone.   
What can I take from this?   
My heart is completely crushed.   
But nothing loved is ever lost -   
And you are loved so much.

Raziel lowered the book and felt the emotion well up inside him. If he could he knew he would have been crying. He replaced the book and took Chibi Raziel over to where his daughter slept. He brushed back her hair, tenderly and regretted having the inability to kiss her goodbye. Instead he placed Chibi Raziel in her arms and with a final, heartbreaking glance back, he left the room.

He was just leaving the city when he heard his son call to him, "Leaving?" he asked, simply. Raziel spun around, surprised, he hadn't heard Azrael follow him; he must have flown, silently through the lightening night air.

"I can't face her in the morning," Raziel sighed, honestly even though he was filled with self-loathing for not having the courage to say goodbye to his loving daughter. Azrael nodded understandingly and without warning, wrapped his arms around his friend.

"Come back soon," he pleaded, whispering into Raziel's filthy colm. The wraith nodded and placed a hand on his son's shoulder, gently easing him off, but comforting him at the same time. Without saying anything further the fallen vampire turned to make his way out of the city and back to Nosgoth as his son flew up to the watchtower, keeping his eyes on his master as he boarded his small vassell and kept his eyes on him until he had disappeared over the dawning horizon.

End


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